Quote:
Originally Posted by Seth81
Also, inflation is undeniable... if you didn't get a 2.3% raise this year (in alberta), then your effective income dropped.
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Yep. And I'm sure that at least for some, you can add "again" to the end of that sentence. Maybe not so much in the oilpatch, I don't know as I'm not in it, but for some the cost of living is increasing far faster than the earnings and it's been that way for quite a few years now. I'm happy that the oilpatch produces prosperity for some but it's a double sided sword (or whatever the metaphor is) because it drives the costs of things up faster and that affects everyone. My household income today is more or less the same it was 10 years ago, but the costs of everything that is being paid for - and I mean just simple things, like groceries, gas, insurance, etc. - is several orders of magnitude different in that timeframe. Add on top of that the optionals it gets even worse. The choices are "earn more" or "spend less". Neither option may be all that straightforward though. Hard to say.